‘Will’ still has power in Germany

Nazi rally pic screens to SRO crowd

BERLIN — Adolf Hitler’s favorite helmer Leni Riefenstahl is still a hot potato, as a one-off unspooling of her 1934 classic “Triumph of the Will” recently proved.

Playing to a standing room only crowd in Berlin as part of a lecture series Jan. 13, her Nazi rally epic was introduced by leading Leni-ologist Wilhelm van Kampen.

The movie screened to silence, but the discussion afterwards got off to a lively start, with one spectator accusing van Kampen of praising Riefenstahl, not damning her.

But things really heated up when one man spoke of his past in the Hitler Youth and idolization of Hitler at the time. He said he was still moved by the film. Some applauded him for his honesty, while others screamed disapproval.

“Triumph of the Will” is still banned from general release in Germany.